Carvalho Woodworking

I grew up working with my hands. Between working on cars with my Dad and simple woodworking with my grandfather, I got the bug for being able to make things. I don’t know if I’d call myself a “maker” or not, but I love to learn new things. When I was younger, to learn something you had to learn from someone else, find a book in the library, or just teach yourself through trial and error. Now, I have the internet 🙂 there’s nothing better than deciding you want to learn something, and 5 minutes later you’re watching videos of how to do it.

In 2008, I read an article from 1939 that had plans for how to build a folding rowboat out of wood. It was a very basic article with basic plans, but I was able to fill in the blanks in my head as to how I would tackle each part. A few months later I had built what I called the “Fish N Fold”… It was what really gave me confidence that with enough planning and thought I could work through pretty much any project.

After that I moved on to some simple furniture and shelving, etc. The game changer was when I began to upgrade my tools. Boy, what a difference a good table saw makes!

Fast forward a few years and now my son William has gotten the bug for making things. He’s got tons of creative ideas floating around in his head and I do my best to try to give him an outlet for him to try things. We talk through the ideas and I help him dial it into something makeable 🙂 Woodturning seems to be his wheelhouse. When I got a lathe for Christmas a few years ago he took right to it and made a handle for an ice cream scoop like he had been doing it for years. We still use it often 🙂 A year or so later he went with me to his first woodworking event and turned his first pen. His pens have now become a highly sought-after gift.

Anyway, that brings us to today… I’ve been considering getting into more woodworking but didn’t like the idea of taking custom orders from clients. There are enough woodworkers out there doing that… So, my thought was that I would build the types of things I enjoy building and make additional ones and offer them up for sale. This way I get to continue to enjoy what I love to do and hopefully make enough to finance my materials and continue to upgrade my tools while continuing to learn new techniques.